


Merry Go Round

by startrekfan



Series: Doctor Strange One Shots [1]
Category: Doctor Strange (2016), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Action/Adventure, Adventure & Romance, Cute, M/M, One Shot, ghost - Freeform, romane, sanctum - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-30
Updated: 2019-04-30
Packaged: 2020-02-10 01:56:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,703
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18650554
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/startrekfan/pseuds/startrekfan
Summary: The title is a reference to the song Merry Go Round by Chemistry.Listen to it once you're done reading for 100% feels experience!Don't forget to listen to it, already open it on Youtube, come on! :D





	Merry Go Round

4:45PM, the day looked calm, New York was alive, as always, but still, everything felt like...tranquility, the Cloak seemed to be sleeping on the couch, a lot of calm clouds in the sky, fresh wind, some leaves dancing around the streets. Wong was at the New York Sanctum, preparing something in the kitchen, Stephen had left earlier to buy whatever the Sanctum needed. When the librarian opened the cabinet...empty. Well, almost empty. There was a package of bread and in the fridge (the normal fridge, not the chained one) there was just...half a pot of butter.  
"Not even water...??"  
Wong complained and sighed, looking up, then to the sides, deciding what he would prepare.  
"I had to ask Stephen to not use the sling ring to do everything...now he's going to take a century."  
The man shook his head, took what they had and started to prepare dinner. The slices of bread went to the oven, he opened a portal and took some cheese he had in the Hong Kong Sanctum's fridge and melted it and miraculously, he found some oregano, hidden behind a lot of empty cans on the kitchen's counter.  
"It's going to be pizza bread. I hope he brings some tomatoes or this will be very boring."  
In a matter of seconds, a knock on the door. Wong opened it and Stephen was there, full of paper bags, wearing his casual clothes.  
"Argh...come on Wong...let me in, it started to rain..."

Wong frowned for a moment, not even a hello...but then, his face softened when he saw Stephen's expression, he had that nostalgic, sweet smile on the corner of his lips, his eyes looked so peaceful, he was glad to be home.  
The librarian stepped away and the other got inside the Sanctum, taking everything to the kitchen. Wong closed the door and followed him.  
Strange placed everything on the chairs and removed his jacket.  
"What a smell...Wong what are you preparing? Is it pizza?"  
The other shook his head.  
"More or less...did you bring some tomatoes...?"  
Stephen started to open the bags and put everything in the right place.  
"Yeah...I've got tomatoes, lettuce, apples, carrots, nutella, chocolate, but I didn't get any ice cream because we eat healthy in this home." He smirked with his dork face, didn't even look at Wong's face, he thought his friend wouldn't even bother, but actually, he managed to get a shy chuckle out of the librarian.

Wong missed his jokes, Wong missed him. After Thanos had snapped his fingers and Stephen hadn't come back, the man was sure his sassy friend was gone...but now everything had returned to normal...and Strange was there again. Wong felt his heart getting warmer as he watched Stephen organize everything, he had been back so recently...everything still looked like a dream.  
"Stephen...we can order everything later...let's eat for now, otherwise, the bread pizzas will get cold."  
Stephen turned holding a paper bag, with a smile on his face.  
"Hey...I found the tomatoes!"

And the evening proceeded like that, the kitchen was no clean, their stomachs were satisfied for the moment and both got to sit on the couch, to relax.  
Strange still had a slice of bread pizza in his hands, Wong had already grabbed a book to read.  
It didn't take Stephen two minutes to say something.  
"It's too quiet and this rain is making me sleepy. Come on let's watch something..."  
Wong didn't even move his eyes from the book.  
"Two important questions, what do you want to watch today and did you bring the popcorn I asked you?"  
"Yep!" The other replied, a sudden glimpse of happiness after getting something right (the popcorn).  
Wong smiled a little.  
"Great, so go prepare it while I finish this chapter, and avoid using short ranged teleportation otherwise you'll get a lot more sleepy."  
"Fine." Strange replied and went to the kitchen to prepare their popcorn and Wong remained on the couch. The truth was...that he hadn't focused on his reading at all. He hadn't advanced not even one page. All he could think about was how Strange had finally returned. That dorky, annoying novice who would keep stealing books and breaking the rules, that student who would fall asleep in the Kamar Taj's library who he would find there, slobbering on the table with his head resting over a pile of books. Just a few years had passed and...Strange sure had changed. He wasn't the same person. After the tragedy Kaecilius had caused...he looked changed. He had gotten so quiet for some weeks, then slowly, he returned to his dorky state...but still, it was like Stephen, the old, dorky, annoying Stephen, had never came back...and after Thanos killed him...he looked different again, Stephen looked more...tired...even...old, not appearance, but soul like, he looked...so wiser and...so patient.

Wong's thought was interrupted by Stephen arriving with two bowls of popcorn, placing one on Wong's lap and the other on his own as he sat.  
"So, what movie is it going to be?" He asked Wong.  
"Anything light that has nothing to do with death, kidnapping, abuse or cheap romance."  
Stephen raised his eyebrows.  
"I agree 100%, Wong. How about...an animation? Those tend to be okay...at least...the most recent ones."  
Wong looked shook.  
"Lion King was the saddest thing since Bambi!"  
Stephen chuckled.  
"That's why I said RECENT."

Both widened their eyes at the sudden loud thunder, the windows of the Sanctum almost shook. The weather had gotten a lot darker, the waves of mystical energy in the air got thicker.  
"Ah. That sure was something." Stephen looked back to check the corridor."  
Wong put his popcorn bowl aside and walked to look through the window.  
Stephen placed his popcorn bowl aside as well and followed Wong.  
"Yesterday's forecast said it should rain at all. First we got that slight rain, fine, but now...a thunderstorm? Nah, something's wrong."  
Wong nodded.  
"The mystical waves are abnormal...impressible climate change...this is sounding like..."  
"Ouija Board Summoning." Stephen added.  
"Correct." Wong closed the window.  
"Better take the Cloak with you, we're getting wet."

Stephen looked back to the couch, the Cloak looked so peaceful, and so tired. The recent fight against Thanos hadn't been easy, it had done its best and it sure deserved some time to recover. Wong looked at Stephen, watched him walk to the Cloak, and so sweetly, Stephen caressed the relic's collar with his thumb, the Cloak still seemed to be sleeping, not even all the noise had woken it up.  
"Wong, let it sleep...besides, it's a bad idea to levitate around with such weather. Let's go solve this and then...let's watch our movie."  
The librarian just nodded, he was already by the door; Stephen instantly changed into his robes and left the Sanctum with his friend, to investigate whatever was causing the havoc.

Once outside, the weather indeed looked different, it was dark, the wind was violent and even the rain was irregular.  
Stephen pointed.  
"That direction. The source of this mystic imbalance is coming from there. Probably two or three squares away. I still have no idea where it is, maybe it's too risky to use a portal to get there since we don't know what we'll be facing."  
Wong agreed, but his mind seemed to be somewhere else. Since when Stephen had gotten this wise? The old Stephen would rush straight away to the danger, maybe improvise something, he was intelligent, yes, but so impatient.  
"Wong...do you have any idea of what this energy might be? I thought it was an Ouija Board soul or something but this is...too strong to be one. Aren't they...normally weak?"  
The librarian paused for a few seconds, trying to recall past experiences, until he finally spoke.  
"Stephen...the energy and the weather...it all makes me think about Ouija Board spirits, but indeed...this energy is stronger than the usual. We should be extra careful, it could even be a trap."  
Strange nodded and continued to walk towards the source.

Not much time later, three teenagers came running towards them, Stephen almost fell and Wong managed to hold the arm of one of them.  
"What happened? Why are you running?" The librarian asked.  
"A MONSTER!! THERE'S A MONSTER!! A GHOST!!" The boy cried, pulled his arm and then continued to run, however, a girl who was running came back.  
"Lilah is still there! She's still there!"   
Stephen raised an eyebrow.  
"There...where?"  
The girl answered. "The library! We decided to study until late...and...suddenly...my brother had this stupid idea...and there's a monster and we couldn't find her!"  
Strange nodded.  
"Alright...got it. Go home, we'll go get Lilah out of the library and deal with this monster ghost you're talking about okay?"  
The girl looked very relieved, and at the same time, surprised. Since when an adult would believe such a thing? People normally wouldn't take that kind of thing seriously...but...that man's eyes...they looked so...honest, he believed it. This brought the girl many insecurities....so indeed...monsters were real...and...there were adults who believed them...but at the same time, a sense of safety warmed her heart.  
"W....who are you...?" She asked. Part of her knew those guys could fight monsters, it just knew.  
Wong interrupted her.  
"We don't have much time, that kid might be in danger..."  
Stephen nodded.  
"Look...we'll do our best. Go home and stay there, alright? Tell your friends to do the same. We'll solve this."

The girl then continued to run home, looking back, the image of Stephen and Wong awakening curiosity in her eyes, for a moment she felt there was an entire universe she had never known right behind her, and she was running away from it.

"Right, the library, now it's easier." Stephen said. "We could teleport to somewhere near and investigate the area. She said there's a kid inside, so one of us get the kid and the other send this monster ghost thing back to wherever it came from."  
Wong smirked.  
"Sounds fair, but things will be a lot more complicated if we're dealing with a possession."  
Stephen gulped.  
"Possession?"  
Wong took his sling ring and started opening the portal.  
"Yes. Sometimes one of these kids have a slightly stronger mystic potential...and sometimes they cross paths with a spirit that has the skill to possess living beings...the combination is...this what you're seeing."  
Stephen's eyes were looking to the void, thinking, realizing how big the problem they were about to face was.  
"I see...combined energy....that's why the mystical intensity got this intense...Wong...we need to be careful to not harm this child."  
Wong nodded and jumped into the portal, Stephen followed him.

The library was dark, the lights were out, the only illumination source was the lightnings outside. Both sorcerers started to search the place, trying to find where the mystical energy was stronger and where it was coming from.  
Stephen couldn't help but to give Wong a little smirk.  
"Hey, Wong...NEVER split up. Every horror movie already proved that it's a really bad idea."  
Wong continued to walk calmly and then he pointed. "Look..."  
Stephen followed with his eyes.  
"A light, Stephen...coming from that corridor."  
Strange gulped, that light was so macabre, it was like a pale camera flash, sometimes as if it was going on and off repeatedly, and there were shadows of irregular tentacle like structures, but they looked made of something organic, vegetable like.

The sorcerers looked at each other and then jumped into the corridor, rings of Raggadorr already formed in their fists.  
Stephen and Wong's eye widened at the imaged, there was a kid, curled in a corner and there was this creature, two tentacles made of whatever that green, musk thing was, attached to the kid's right leg. The monster seemed to be feeding, and getting stronger and stronger.  
The moment the mystical beast saw the sorcerers, it shouted, oh the shout, such a disturbing thing, it looked like a mix of despair and rage, an intense female voice, the sound completely distorted.   
Wong covered his ears and turned to Stephen as if in an emergency.  
"Stephen! Cover your ears! The shouts of that kind of spirit might make you....faint."  
Strange's body had already leaned against one of the bookshelves, his eyes looked so lost, he seemed dizzy, his eyes turning, he almost fell, but he was still half there.  
"Curses!" Wong conjured a sound restriction spell against the creature, now its shouts seemed really far away, but they were still disturbing. The place was still dark it was really hard to see, really hard to figure out a way to remove the kid from there safely.  
Strange shook his head and conjured a light spell, creating a bright golden sphere in the air, illuminating the place.  
The creature only shouted more and its form was finally revealed: it was a very thin body, impossible to identify if it was a man or a woman, its eyes were two spheres of flashing light, and from its head, these plant like tentacles would come out. It's body was completely dark, as if burned, melted and it's mouth was huge.  
Wong's eyes widened when he saw the image, then he dashed to get the kid, but the ghost pushed the sorcerer away with its tentacles, which started to wrap around Wong's body. Strange started to move his hands, but the monster wrapped his quick tentacles around him too, and then, it started to drain their energy.

The thunderstorm outside started getting stronger, heavier, the shouts of the monster, even if isolated, still were getting higher.  
Wong looked very concerned, scared.  
"The sound restriction spell won't stop those shouts for long if they continue getting stronger like this...!"  
Strange's eye started to move frenetically to see if he could find an answer, and it was then he saw the Ouija board, and it was then that Stephen had an idea, and his lips moved to say four words.  
"I END THIS CALL!"

However, nothing happened.  
Stephen's face looked in panic, that was his last resort, the tentacles were already pressing his throat, he barely could breathe properly, until he had a last realization.  
"WONG! REMOVE THE SOUND RESTRICTION SPELL!"  
Wong then canceled the spell and when the monster was about to shout again, Stephen announced once more.  
"I END THIS CALL!!!"  
  
The creature fell silent, as if it had lost its energies. The Ouija Board on the floor started draining the monster's energy, it eventually let go of Wong, Spethen and the child. They were panting, breathing, what a despair that had been. As soon as he could, Stephen blasted Eldritch energy against the board, destroying it.  
"Why do kids insist playing with that kind of thing...?" Stephen moaned.  
When Wong was about to reply, Strange interrupted. "I know...it's...fun...right?"  
After a few more seconds of panting, he stood and walked to the kid.  
Wong looked down.  
"His mystical energy...it got drained...severely drained..."  
Stephen sighed and picked the kid up.  
"That's not a problem...I can lend him some of mine...until his own energy heals by itself..."  
Wong's eyes showed admiration again. "But Stephen...you know you could die if-"  
Strange shook his head. "Wong...these kinds of energetic bridges are dangerous when you don't know how to do them...and gladly...I already studied how do it."  
Wong still looked concerned. "I know...but even knowing...they still can be dangerous. Maybe we both should do it together."  
"And risk your life as well? No way, Wong. If everything goes wrong, I would be glad dying like this."  
Wong paused, in a half shock.  
Stephen continued.  
"We don't have time to take him anywhere, even if we teleported to Kamar Taj, until we got a safe method with seals and everything...this kid...this kid can die any moment, I'm doing it."  
And then the sorcerer placed his hand over the kid's chest, a bright, warm golden and blue energy started to move from his scarred hand to the kid's body, and immediately, the kid's general condition started to get better.  
Wong stepped closer. "Stephen...be careful...you know how kids can store more energy than adults can..."  
Strange looked at Wong and just smiled softly. "I know...don't worry. I'll be fine."

The rain stopped, it was already night when Wong and Stephen walked back home, the kid was taken to an hospital, where he would get all the health care he needed, where his family would be informed.  
On the way back, Wong would almost continuously check if Stephen was alright, and he was. The librarian wondered how large Stephen's mystical potential had gotten, indeed, the more you practiced the greater your magic would become...and that was almost scary when Stephen's energy was considered. Wong knew Strange had used the Time Stone to practice, he knew the fight against Dormammu probably had lasted way more than 10 minutes and he knew his friend was growing. Slowly, a faint smile formed on Wong's face while all the consequences Stephen's body showed was...getting sleepy.  
"Wong..." Stephen said, his voice like a moan.  
"What is it...?"  
"Why can't we use portals more oftennnn....I want to get home..."  
The librarian chuckled. It was funny how the old dorky Stephen would show up sometimes with these comments.  
"It's because we already spent a lot of our mystic energy...we need to get some rest before using more...or...do you really want to faint on the floor?"  
Stephen chuckled as well.  
"Ah...I know you would carry me if I fell."  
Wong just shook his head and continued to walk, walking was good and the wind was so fresh, and the stars were so pretty in the sky.

Once they got home, they sat on the couch and sighed.  
Stephen took a deep breath and took his popcorn bowl.  
"If you think I'm quitting our movie...no I'm not. How about...Wreck it Ralph?"  
Wong also took his popcorn. "Sounds fine. No violence, no war, just a cute light adventure."  
"Wong I'm going to light the fireplace."  
And with the end of the evening, with the noise of the fire and the soft smell of wood...they watched their movie, the Cloak still resting by Stephen's side, so peacefully, now it was gripping his arm, partially wrapped around it....and Stephen had taken the Cloak in his arms, and they were hugging.   
Wong was watching the movie, when suddenly he looked at Stephen to make a comment and...he was asleep, hugging the Cloak. He barely had gotten any popcorn, he was just there, all peaceful. Peaceful, yes, that was the word. Wong remembered all the times he had found Stephen sleeping at the library by sunrise, his face used to be...scared, worried, tired, drained...but now, things had changed, Stephen looked happy, happy to be at home. Yes, he felt home, the way he was calm and relaxed...it was explicit.

Stephen's head was leaning on Wong's shoulder, very slightly, there was a pillow between them. Wong backed away very slowly to not wake Stephen up and for a few seconds, even minutes, he just watched Stephen. His face...his features...he finally was taking some time to admire them, those unusual cheeks, those soft eyebrows and that hair, combed to the side. He was sure it used to be brown...but now it seemed...darker. Magic was starting to change Stephen, that for sure.  
"So ethereal..." The words escaped Wong's lips. That's how Stephen looked.  
Slowly, the librarian moved to take Stephen in his arms, so he could take him to his bed, but he paused the moment he touched Stephen's hand. So many scars, and they were so deep. Stephen had never talked about them, well, he had complained about them, about how they would ache all the time, but never actually talked about them. Thinking about it, there was so much about Strange Wong didn't know...and he had realized...he wanted to know.  
Calmly Wong took Stephen and the Cloak in his arms and climbed the stairs, resting his friend on his bed, the Cloak cuddling more and more into Stephen's arms.  
"Good night I guess." Wong whispered, for a moment, decided to remove Stephen's hair from his face, and then caught himself running his fingers through it, so soft.  
Wong did that for minutes, and when he was done, he caressed Stephen's cheek, there was a little bruise there.   
The librarian left for a few minutes and returned with some bandages and herbal medicines...applied some on Stephen's cheek and covered the bruise with a little bandage cutout.  
"I'm glad you're back..."  
Wong said, his eyes couldn't leave the image of Stephen, sleeping so deeply. The librarian was glad to have him there again. Slowly, his shy hand caressed his hair for a few more minutes, until Wong finally turned.  
He was in Stephen's room now, it had his personal objects, his smell, his style...  
But for his surprise, the place was more filled with books, scrolls and notebooks than with personal objects per se. There was this shelf with a broken watch, a notebook and a drawer with a few clothes...and that was it. For a moment, there was this urge to cry...because there was nothing there that could define Stephen, basically everything there was either for personal use or magic related, his friend was losing himself for the mystic arts, and that's something Wong didn't want to happen.  
Passed by Stephen again, aiming towards the door, looked at his friend again and said.  
"Tomorrow we'll get you something nice...something you like. Try to not sleep all day...okay?"  
Stephen moved slightly on the bed, so comfortable while cuddling the Cloak, a sweet, soft smile formed on his face and he just replied.  
"Okay..."

**Author's Note:**

> Don't forget to listen to Merry Go Round by Chemistry, read the lyrics!


End file.
